Sickly Beauty
Two days had passed since Crumo’s shadow attacked the village.
And yet I still couldn’t get out of bed. In front of me sat Daeun, spoon in hand, smiling brightly as ever.
“Kana, ahhh~”
“....”
“My arm’s going to fall off. Hurry up, say ahhh~”
“I can, eat, by myself.”
“The patient is… talking back…?!”
“...Haa.”
“W-wait, wait—if you don’t take it now, you’ll spill it! If Kana doesn’t hurry up and eat, she’ll end up dropping bright red stew all over those white sheets, and then the poor person who has to wash them will have such a hard time, and surely you wouldn’t turn away so cruelly, would you? Oh, of course not, because Kana is so kind—”
“Ah—”
At this rate, I’m going to start bleeding from my ears.
The moment I finally opened my mouth and gave in, Daeun clapped her mouth shut.
Apparently delighted that she had achieved her goal, she even hummed under her breath.
I chewed the stew, which was filled with finely diced meat, then swallowed and said, “I think Daeun would make a better bard than a swordswoman.”
“Huh? Really? Well, I do think I’m pretty good with words. My singing’s not bad either, I think….”
“Mm.”
That wasn’t what I meant, but.
She looked satisfied, so I supposed that was good enough.
...How did I end up like this?
Reduced to a hatchling being fed grain by hand.
As Daeun offered me another spoonful of stew, I sighed inwardly.
Yes. To be honest, my body still wasn’t in great shape.
I was better than I had been two days ago, but every so often a faint ache would rise up and make me frown.
Even so, I didn’t think it was bad enough to warrant this level of pampering, but everyone looked at me like I was a bird with a broken wing, one step away from tumbling out of the sky.
Yesterday, I’d tried to go outside for a short walk and had barely opened the door when—
“Wait! Kana, where are you going?”
“I’m suffocating. I’m going out for some air.”
“What kind of air are you talking about when you can barely walk? I’ll open the window, so just put up with that. Okay?”
“No.”
“...No choice then. Celine, please.”
“Of course.”
“?!”
...They’d actually used Holy Magic to stop me.
I probably could have forced my way through if I’d really set my mind to it, but they’d gone so far overboard that I could only stare at them in disbelief and retreat back into my room.
That really wasn’t what Holy Magic was for.
And that wasn’t the only thing tormenting me.
—Hmm... hoh... I see....
...Would it kill you to keep your muttering to yourself?
—No.
You said you were asleep. Go back to sleep already.
—Was it not you who woke me from a perfectly good nap? And now that your business is done, you want me gone immediately? How heartless.
There was also a dragon who noticed the moment my body recovered even a little and started pestering me.
Part of the reason I didn’t want to activate my blessing was because of that, too.
If he was a dragon, shouldn’t he be at least a little more dignified?
The dragons I knew weren’t like this.
—That’s prejudice.
Yeah. Seeing you makes that pretty clear.
—That, too, is prejudice. Do you think I show this side of myself to just anyone? I’m being kind to you because I like your soul.
...Eugh.
...Disgusting.
What, was I supposed to squeal, “Oh, I’m honored!” and dance around in delight?
If he thought I’d be thrilled just because I’d won the favor of a lizard, he was sorely mistaken.
Anyway... that was more or less how I was being tormented from every direction.
If I said I was thirsty, water appeared. If I said I was hungry, a feast—well, not exactly a feast, but at least something delicious—appeared before me.
More than anything, the fact that there weren’t any leafy greens in sight was what I liked best.
“Honestly, with picky eaters, the best thing is to cut it up so they can’t see it.”
“Huh?”
“...I didn’t say anything!”
Anyway, if you asked whether it was uncomfortable or comfortable, it was comfortable, yes....
How could it be anything but, when I didn’t have to lift a finger and everything I wanted was brought right to me?
Still, being comfortable and being suffocated were two very different things.
“Huuuh...”
Maybe all that obediently lying around hadn’t been for nothing, because I was recovering faster than I’d expected.
So—just one more day.
At most two. Let’s hold out a little longer.
With that resolve, I quietly accepted the food Daeun fed me.
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Daeun glanced nervously at Celine.
“...How is it?”
“It’s delicious.”
“Heehee, right?”
Only after hearing Celine say it was delicious did Daeun finally let out a relieved, triumphant smile.
For the past few days, Daeun had taken charge of making all of their meals.
That was only natural, since any ingredients or food touched by demons would be tainted with Magi.
—That’s actually just an excuse.
It wasn’t as if only demons knew how to cook, and Celine was right there beside her.
For simple dishes, Celine could easily handle them herself.
And yet Daeun had insisted on doing the troublesome work for one reason.
So cute...!
She wanted to see Kana eating the food she made, puffing her cheeks as she chewed.
The way Kana’s soft cheeks moved every time her mouth worked was so adorable.
Even when she wore a deadpan expression, the sight of her quietly accepting the food always left Daeun feeling as if her exhaustion had been washed away.
As she reminisced, grinning to herself, Daeun’s expression suddenly turned gloomy.
“But that ends today, I guess....”
Of course it was good that Kana had recovered.
More than anyone, Daeun knew how miserable it was to be sick, and she had earnestly wanted Kana to get better quickly and get back on her feet.
Still, it was also true that she felt a little regretful now that the hand-feeding was over.
If only she could do that sort of thing all the time.
Kana doesn’t look like it, but she’s actually pretty shy....
If Daeun tried something like ahhh~, it would probably turn into Aagh!
Honestly, the fact that Kana had tolerated Daeun’s stubbornness up to now was practically a miracle.
Maybe it’s because of that incident.
The day they dealt with Crumo’s shadow and then cleared out the monster horde drawn in by the dragon’s mana.
Daeun and Kana had finally had the conversation they’d never finished.
Daeun apologized for being so stubborn and making things difficult by refusing to listen to Kana.
And Kana apologized, saying she was sorry for leaving Daeun alone and letting her get caught up in dangerous trouble, and also for having misunderstood her.
Even when Daeun asked what she’d misunderstood, Kana kept her mouth tightly shut and refused to say, so Daeun still didn’t know.
But seeing Kana go along with her stubborn demands for several days afterward, Daeun figured the matter must have weighed on her quite a bit.
“What on earth did she misunderstand?”
Daeun was curious, but she didn’t ask Kana.
It had only been a few days since she’d apologized for making things awkward. She couldn’t repeat the same mistake again, could she?
So she quietly swallowed her little curiosity alone.
“Tomorrow’s finally the day.”
Celine, who was helping her prepare the dishes, spoke up.
“Huh? Oh—do you mean going to Laxia?”
“Yes, that’s right.”
Ah, right....
Daeun had nearly forgotten about Laxia. Then she remembered hearing Kana and Atisha discussing the ship, the schedule, and a few other details.
Including the fact that they were set to leave tomorrow.
“Are you still very nervous?”
“No. Not really.”
Daeun shook her head.
When she’d first heard Kana say they were going to the infamous demonic continent of Laxia, she had been nervous. But after arriving in the demon village humans called a “trash heap,” and spending several days among the demons, she’d realized that the demons of rumor and the demons of reality were nothing alike.
Demons weren’t vicious monsters who commanded savage beasts and tore humans apart alive.
Aside from their horns and their skin color, they were ordinary people too.
In some ways, they even seemed more innocent than most.
Not everything you hear is true.
Learning once again that you had to see something for yourself before you could understand it, Daeun no longer feared Laxia.
“Laxia is still a place where people live, after all.”
Daeun gazed fondly at the single flower resting in one corner of the kitchen.
It had wilted now because of the Magi, but there had been a time when it bloomed in vivid splendor.
Remembering the child’s bright smile as she held out the flower and thanked her for saving it made Daeun feel warm all over.
“...But I guess I’ll be able to handle it, right?”
And yet the unease still lingered.
Besides, after the recent attack, Daeun had become painfully aware of her own limits, and she couldn’t easily shake the anxiety from her chest.
Even though countless demons praised her.
“Don’t worry. I’m sure it’ll be fine.”
“Mm, umm....”
In the end, Daeun had no choice.
Once she’d come this far, the only thing left was to go along.
Besides—
I promised I wouldn’t leave. I can’t make such a confident promise and then run away just because I’m scared.
With the magical tools and Celine here, somehow they’d manage.
With that rather optimistic thought, Daeun ladled stew into a bowl.
They were going to Laxia, yes, but that didn’t mean she could skip eating properly.
Daeun picked up the stew she’d made with the vegetables chopped very, very finely and headed toward Kana’s room.
Ah, come to think of it....
If they were leaving tomorrow, then starting tomorrow she’d have to go back to her real job.
The time was approaching when Daeun would have to turn her streaming back on after abandoning it under the excuse of nursing Kana.
...Maybe I should rest just a little longer?
Daeun hesitated, knowing full well what kind of reaction would greet her if she went live through the fan café and other sites.
She’d abruptly stopped broadcasting, and then hadn’t streamed for days. It would be absolute chaos, no doubt about it.
The devil whispered in her ear.
Honestly, you’ve been running nonstop until now. It’s fine if you rest a little longer, isn’t it?
And right on its heels, an angel whispered too.
If you’re going to take a break anyway, there’s nothing wrong with coming back once the fire has fully burned out.
...Was that really an angel?
Looking closer, its wings seemed a little blackened.
The sweet temptation shook Daeun, but in the end she managed to resist it.
“For now, I should at least explain the situation...”
Past me, why on earth did you do that?
But I didn’t want to show people I was hurting.
That wasn’t funny. Not even a little.
Stupid girl, irresponsible girl....
Daeun chewed out her past self with every insult she could think of, trying to soothe the knot of complicated feelings in her chest.
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